Steve Simmons previously unpublished interview, 7/7/06

I knew him when I was in high school, growing up. He married my mother, I was probably in 12th grade, maybe a freshman in college. I knew him around the house. He would talk about how he was very proud of his work on the various comic books he worked on. I think he not only did work on the storyline, which he did an impressive amount with, [but] also I think I remember him saying was responsible for how Batman looked, like maybe his cape, and how the mask covered Batman’s face? I think he also talked about doing something with the Batmobile, maybe he came up with that idea, too. … He was very proud of his work.

I remember him bringing Batman and other comics home. We had a whole stack of comic books at the house which would probably be very valuable today but have since been lost. He would have us read them and react to them. As kids, we were, of course, thrilled.

He was a man with a great sense of humor. He was very smart. He was very worldly to a young kid. He liked opera and classical music and reading the New York Times and travel. He was a sharp dresser, I’d say, very nattily dressed. [Irwin Hasen also described Bill with the ten-dollar word “nattily.”]

You were how old when you met him?

I was probably thirteen maybe. [this would’ve been 1959]

Do you remember Freddie?

Yes.

How old was he in relation to you?

I think he was a little older than me. I could be wrong about that. I met Freddie maybe once or twice. I really never knew him very well. … [Bill] was everything from showing me how to tie a tie to talking about college. He also wrote for television. When I went to California with my real father (Bill, of course, was stepfather), [he said] I should just drop by one of the Hollywood studios on his behalf just to say hi.

Did you consider him your stepfather?

It wasn’t the type of thing where he was a stepfather from when I was very young. It was more a late-blooming thing. I think they married when I was probably a freshman in college.

Your mom said ‘68.

Then it was even later. Then it was when I was a junior or senior in college. [Steve graduated Cornell in ‘68]

Did you and your siblings have a sense of his significance in the comic industry at the time?

I would say we didn’t. And I think also the comic industry as a whole and the people who created it are now looked upon very very differently than they were at that day. I also can remember calling Warner Bros. when the first Batman—my mom wanted me to do this—first Batman movie came out to try and see if we could get Bill credit. I talked to the people there. They acknowledged Bill was instrumental but they weren’t willing to put—for legal reasons—didn’t want to give him credit on the film. I told them I’m not looking for money, I’ll sign a release, but they didn’t want to do it.

You wouldn’t happen to have anything left of Bill’s? Photos, mementos, letters?

I may have a photo. Let me take a look. … [He] talked about how he worked on other characters. I think on Superman, he was pretty instrumental in some of the stuff there. He told me that some of the things Superman is known for he helped create. Was there something called the Green Hornet?Green Lantern. He co-created him.

Yes, he did that, too. He probably did a lot that Bob Kane took credit for, quite frankly. I don’t think he was paid as much as he should have.

Did he ever talk to you about that? That he was cheated?

I think he once said something to the effect that Bob Kane took more credit than he should have. Put it this way, Bob Kane was getting credit, he wasn’t. Something to that effect. I never heard him talking about not making enough money. Maybe once I did, that Kane got most of the money.

Do you remember him getting asked to write the Superman movie script?

Vaguely. I remember we’d all sit in front of the TV set and watch the television stuff he would write. We’d all be very proud when his name came on at the end. My mom was a friend of Reggie Rose, too, so Bill got to know Reggie. [Rose wrote 12 Angry Men]

You remember nothing more specific about the Superman script?

I do not but I believe that did happen. He worked very hard on this stuff and probably bounced stuff off my mother. My mother was very creative, still is. She’s a great artist. Always has been an artist. My guess is that during all those years Bill would—not all the time—would bounce ideas for comics off of my mother. So in some small way, I can’t give you chapter and verse, I’m sure she contributed a little bit to all of this.

She did say that he would run things by her.

I’m absolutely positive that happened. Another thing I remember is Bill showing me his muscles. He worked out. He was a short, not short short, but relatively short guy. But his muscles, I’d always brag to my friends about how strong his muscles are. He’d make a muscle and me and my young friends would all go—this was when we were 13 or 12—we’d all go feel his muscle.

Do you know why he didn’t serve in the war? Because of his heart?

There was something but I just don’t know. Sorry.

He was not overweight toward the end of his life?

Not that, no. Well, he certainly wasn’t when I saw him in 1970. He was never overweight that I saw. Always very muscular.

Do you remember hearing about his death?

I do. I remember once he had a heart attack. I visited him in the hospital and he told me he was very touched by that.When was that?Probably 1970ish, something like that. I probably knew him from the late ‘50s through [his death in] ‘74.

Was that the last time you saw him?

Probably whenever that heart attack was when I visited him in the hospital.

* Fairy Spell: How Two Girls Convinced the World That Fairies Are Real (nonfiction picture book about the two girls in WWI England took photos of what they claimed were real fairies); illustrated by Eliza Wheeler; Clarion (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

* Thirty Minutes Over Oregon: A Japanese Pilot's World War II Story (nonfiction picture book about the unprecedented accomplishment—and redemption—of the first person to bomb the U.S. mainland from a plane); illustrated by Melissa Iwai; Clarion (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

“[N]o library in the world could object to the book’s style and panache. [T]his is one biography that’s going to lure the kids like nothing else. More fun than any children’s biography has any right to be”—Fuse #8 (School Library Journal; four out of five stars)

“Fascinating”—Horn Book

“Sure to become a classic example of the genre”—Families Online

“Wonderful…young readers…will find this…title appealing and thereby ensure that future generations recall the amazing story behind Superman’s creation as well. Wait, did I say ‘recall’? Strike that—make it ‘will be inspired by’ instead. This book is that good”—Firefox News

“[T]ouching... The illustrated section...is upbeat, entertaining, and informative...the [well-crafted] afterword shows the shadow side of the great American dream. ...Nobleman is equally adept at both stories”—Boston Globe

“Surprisingly poignant”—San Francisco Chronicle

“Haunting”—Geek Monthly

“Excellent”—GeekDad (WIRED)

“A-minus”—A.V. Club

“The best and most accurate depiction of their lives in print”—Brad Ricca, documentary filmmaker, Last Son, and later author of Super Boys

“Engrossing...wonderful”—Scripps Howard News Service

“I was completely mesmerized by this book from the first instant I opened it. I loved every page, and every word. Boys of Steel transported me; it made me feel young; it moved me to tears. Honest to God, it did! It caused my black heart to melt. The book is absolutely fantastic, the book is tremendous, the book is a huge achievement”—Robby Reed, DIAL B for BLOG

"Sometimes the most inconsequential episodes in larger stories can turn out to be the most moving, and so it is with Thirty Minutes Over Oregon … a thought-provoking meditation on the power of forgiveness"

—New York Times Book Review

"Engrossing and unexpectedly touching … lovely story of reconciliation"

—Wall Street Journal

"Powerful and poignant...a must-read"

—Kirkus Reviews

"Such a cool story...remarkable... We...need this book right now"

—Fuse #8 (School Library Journal)

"Nobleman knows just the right tone to strike with this story, and he unfolds its events with a storyteller's flair. … There are several lessons here, organically made, and kids who come for the wartime action will be pulled along to the book's ultimately pacific message"

—Horn Book

"An important and breathtaking book"

—Colby Sharp book talk video

"Clearly written...moving... This quiet story is less about war than the toll it takes on those who fight, the possibility of reconciliation, and the value of understanding other cultures. A war story with a heartening conclusion"

—Booklist

"Respectful and balanced"

—Bulletin for the Center of Children's Books

"This is a remarkable story...a story to be remembered, forever. You will be moved"

Praise for "Fairy Spell"

"A rich overview of this bizarre historical controversy… deftly navigates topics like childhood in the early 20th century, the media and the influence of celebrity culture, and the history of photography … a strong nonfiction choice"

—School Library Journal

"With a crisp and engaging style, Nobleman relates this fascinating story… Young readers are bound to be intrigued"

—Horn Book

"Engaging ... A fascinating introduction to one of the greatest hoaxes of all time, deftly pitched to elementary-age children"

—Kirkus Reviews

"Will leave children guessing until the end"

—Publishers Weekly

"A seamless blend of both frolics and facts fuels suspense ... part accidental trickster tale, part unforgettable fairy tale, all true, this will have kids reaching for cameras of their own in no time"

—Booklist

Praise for "Brave Like My Brother"

Honors:

A Junior Library Guild Selection

Other coverage:

"History lovers will find a lot of new information here…Nobleman keeps the suspense tight"—Horn Book

"Always steers clear of melodrama. A good option"—Booklist

"Thoroughly engaging on every account...excels in every regard"—Times Herald (MI)

"A lovely read and a glimpse into the bond between brothers through an exchange of letters. Grab a tissue for the ending"—Lindsey Anderson, Good Reads

"A gentle introduction to WWII although it does pack a bit of an emotional wallop"—Barbara, Good Reads